Documentation

How To Document Your Invention

Documenting your invention journey is an absolute essential key to your process. You'll want to create an invention journal and start documenting everything right away. The reason behind documenting is this: you won’t come up with a concept then immediately go to patent, so along the way you'll have many many changes. By documenting your process and your ideas, you will be able to think out all of the details of your invention and iron out kinks along the way. Your journal will also become proof of the date of conception and how you came up with the idea in the event someone else also has the same idea and applies for a patent. If two people apply for a patent at the same time, they will go into what's called an Interference Proceeding. The Board of Patent Appeals and Interferences will take a look at all records and documents from inventors to determine who truly invented the product and is entitled to the patent. So your documentation could be very important in the event someone else is thinking the same thing you are.

The first thing you want to do is get a bound notebook and start documenting everything. Write, write, write. Include whatever you like, the more details the better, but here are a few things to include:

1. Date you came up with the idea
2. What the invention does
3. How you came up with the idea
4. How the invention works
5. Draw a picture of the invention
6. List materials you think you’d use
7. Key features of the invention
8. Who you’d like to sell the invention to

Once you’ve outlined the invention, use the notebook to record all of your thoughts, notes and revisions. Be sure to be as detailed as possible including dates, times and locations of all thoughts, meetings, phone calls, etc. Don’t be afraid to brainstorm, doodle, etc. This is your thought process, but just make sure to clearly document all details.